Do I Believe, Really?

In the past couple of weeks I have found myself in a position to ask this question of myself. Do I believe, really? Not that Jesus is my Lord, that question was answered nearly twenty-five years ago, and has no need to be questioned at this point in my life. No, what I'm talking about is do I believe what I've been telling people for years?

I think we all come to a point in life where we are faced with situations that call for us to reevaluate what we are believing. To ask that all important question, "Do I really believe what God's Word says is true?" Now understand me, I'm not doubting God at all, but some times we can find ourselves in a comfortable place with God, and just be coasting in our walk with Him. We're not in sin, but we're also not in a truly active pursuit of Him either.

I was talking with a friend recently, and I made the comment that I felt as if I was full of crap. He asked me why I felt that way, and my response was that I have been for years helping men to realize their potential in Christ, and now I am in a position to have to not only talk the talk, but to walk the walk myself in a greater way. He quickly told me that I wasn't full of crap. And I actually know that, it was the enemy trying to get me down on myself. (Something that he is really good at too.)

While I might not like being in the position that I am in right now, it is a good thing for all of us to rethink why we believe what we believe from time to time. If nothing else, it helps us to stop coasting and to get a little bit more real with God, and that is never a bad thing I think. So ask yourself, what do I believe, really? And why do I believe that? Then make any corrections that you need to, and see what more the Lord has for you. That's what I'm doing!

Strength and honor for the Kingdom and the King!

God's Got Your Back

I was reading in the book of Esther this morning about how Haman decides that he has got to kill Mordecai the Jew. He builds a gallows in the front yard of his home to hang him on. Okay, can I say that if one of my neighbors builds a weapon to kill people on their front lawn, I might have to scratch my head and wonder about that.

So the king decides that he is going to bless Mordecai because he had foiled a plot to kill the king earlier, and it just so happens that Haman is in the court coming to see Xerxes about having Mordecai hung on the gallows, when the king calls for Haman and asks his opinion on how the king should bless "the one who has the king's favor".

Haman, full of himself, obviously thinks that the king is talking about him, so he devises an elaborate plan to show off how much the king admires this man that he wants to bless. It's hilarious, Haman says, dress the man in the king's robes, put him on the king's horse and have one of the nobles lead this man throughout the entire city proclaiming how much the king favors him.

Can you imagine the look on Haman's face, when the king tells him that he has come up with an excellent plan, now go and do what you have devised for Mordecai the Jew? Talk about being between a rock and a hard place. Makes me laugh just to think about it. Of course you know that Mordecai knew that Haman hated him, so I've got to think that while he was being paraded around with Haman saying such nice things about him, he had to have seen the irony.

I think of a couple of Scriptures here, "No weapon formed against you shall prosper." and "Pride goes before a fall." Do you think Mordecai was thinking of these as he was lead around by Haman? What about Mordecai? Do you think he was thinking that he was about to be honored when Haman came and got him from the king's gate? He knew that Haman was the man who had tricked the king into decreeing that the Jews were to be destroyed in the coming days.

I love how God shows up for Mordecai in this story, probably when he least expected it I'm sure. I know that seems to be how it is in my life, God has always showed up for me and my family, it just hasn't always been at the outset of whatever challenge we've found ourselves in, but towards the end. God's not vicious or mean to us, I think that He likes the dramatic rescue. I mean after all don't we like it when the hero swoops in at the last possible second to save the day? I know that I do, and if we like that then surely God does too huh?

Life on this planet is interesting and exciting if we will stop long enough to realize that even though to us it may look like our world is ending God is there with us every step of the way, and He has got our backs no matter what. I'm reminded of one more Scripture that says, "I will never leave you, nor forsake you, so that you may boldly say the Lord is my helper, I will not fear what man can do to me." (Hebrews 13:5-6)

Strength and honor!

Are You Watching Life, Or Participating?

Has this ever happened to you as you watched a movie or television show? You're sitting there enjoying the entertainment, when you see the main character about to get into trouble and getting caught up in the moment you start to holler at the screen for the character to watch out?

We've all done that I'm sure. Why do we do that exactly? It's because we can see what is about to happen to the people in those stories we're watching. We can see the man with the gun hiding behind the door, where the hero of the story can't. It's part of what makes story telling good, but it also makes us a spectator to those people's lives.

Wouldn't it be nice to know what was about to happen next in any given moment? I mean to have clarity in knowing that the decisions that you are making right now are the correct ones. What a wonderful gift that would be huh? Absolutely not! I mean part of me does wish for that, but if we knew everything all the time how boring would our lives become? It would be like eating the same meal for breakfast, lunch and dinner, every day for your entire life. Yes it would nourish your body, but don't you think you would begin to detest meal times? I know that I would.

This life we are living is called by the Apostle Paul a race. But it is not a sprint, no it is more like a marathon, one that we run at a constant pace until we win. In Hebrews chapter eleven he talks

about the great cloud of witnesses that we have set as an example of what our race should look like. These heroes of faith are there to spur us on to continue our race no matter what. Paul says in Hebrews chapter twelve, verse two that we should fix our eyes on Jesus, who is the author and finisher of our faith.

There's a couple of thoughts here, first off the great cloud of witnesses were all men and women of faith that were before Jesus completed the thing that God had for us all. So therefore these people are our examples of how to have faith in God, even though we are partakers of the better covenant.

The second thing is that we are to fix our eyes on Jesus. I heard a minister speaking this year and he talked about how he was a track runner in high school. He told us the story about one of his meets, where he was way out in front of everyone else. He recalled that he could not hear the sound of anyone else's feet around him, so he turned his head to see how far ahead of everyone he was, and lost the race by one-tenth of a second.

There was another runner right beside him, and when he took his eyes off of his goal, the finish line, it caused him to slow up in his running just enough that the man beside him took the prize. He went on to say that the coach always told them to never take their eyes off of the goal, but to press on towards the finish line until the race was over. And had he done that on that day, he would have won the race.

If we do not keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, we will begin to get distracted from the goal of our race and slow up too. We cannot spend our time looking at what is around us, but must continue to strain forward towards the prize. We must pray, listen for the voice of the Holy Spirit, then step out in faith believing that we are making the best and right decisions that we can.

We must press on with that decision until we either win or realize that we missed it. And when we miss it, which we will from time to time, we need to stop, ask God to forgive us for missing it, then pray again, listen for God and then run our race. Life is not about getting it right every time, it is about getting out there and living that full, abundant life that Jesus talked about in John 10:10. Yes, we'll make mistakes, and miss what God is saying from time to time, but if we play it safe all of our lives, we will miss out on things that will make our lives more interesting for sure.

A good friend of mine said to me today, "Do what God is calling you to do, even if you have to do it afraid." Good advice for sure, the unknown can be scary, but even if we are afraid, we know we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us because God is right there with us. So take a chance today, live life fully keeping your eyes on the prize, Jesus.

Doing What Makes Me Come Alive

If there is one thing that I've learned in the last few years, it is that to truly be happy and content with oneself you have to do what makes you come alive inside. For me, that is helping people to find out some truth that maybe they haven't seen before. And the avenue that I get to do that is through writing.

Writing has always been something that I love to do. To take a thought and craft it in such a way that people can read it and understand a little bit more about you is truly fun for me. I can remember once back in the second grade when my teacher Mrs. Smart asked us to write a short story around if we could be anything, what would that be. I wrote that if I could be anything, I'd be a G.I. Joe.

Now the G.I. Joe I was talking about wasn't the military man version, but the twelve-inch action figures that I used to play with. I had what to a small boy seemed like a bazillion of them, and I could entertain myself in my bedroom for hours setting up daring rescue mission or attacks on the evil enemy soldiers. So it was a no-brainer for me to write that I would want to be a G.I. Joe.

As I recall, I wrote that I would like to be a G.I. Joe because I could be drug around through the mud, made to fight bad guys and cause the little boy that owned me so much fun in his life. That was written 40 some years ago, but I still remember it with fondness, and it shows a little bit of my heart as it was way back then. Something that I am recapturing with each and every blog I write.

Because that is what makes me come alive. And as Howard Thurman said, "Don't ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive." That truly is what we need more of in this world, people who have come alive!

David Encouraged Himself In The Lord

I find myself in a similar situation to King David in the Bible. Not to bore you with the details, suffice it to say that I find myself in a place that is not very comfortable at all. Now my story is unlike David's in that I have not had my home attacked, and my wife and children carried off by Amalekites. But I do seem to be being pressed on every side right now, and like David and his men, at this point I want to just sit down and cry.

As I thought on my predicament today, these words came up from my heart, "David encouraged himself in the Lord..." I went to the online Bible I use, and looked up the story which is found in 1 Samuel 30:1 - 8. As I read it, this is what I found in it. Let me list it out for you in bullet points:

• David realized that there was trouble. (1 Samuel 30:1 - 3)
• David wept for his loss. (1 Samuel 30:4)
• David came to realize that he was really in serious trouble. (1 Samuel 30:6)
• David encouraged himself in the Lord. He put his trust in God. (1 Samuel 30:6b)
• David prayed to God, asking His direction. (1 Samuel 30:7 - 8)
• God answered David. (1 Samuel 30:8b)

So like David, this morning I realized that there was some trouble, and truthfully I was at a loss for what to do. While tears didn't actually fall from my eyes, they were there. So yes, in a way I actually wept over the trouble I found myself to be in. It wasn't until later in the day that I would come to realize that the trouble I had thought myself to be in earlier was nothing compared to what I now found myself in.

Like David, I have encouraged myself in the Lord a little bit. I've decided that tonight I will do more of that, putting my trust in the Lord above. I will also be asking God for His direction, and according to what I learned in 1 Samuel 30, I will expect that He will answer me just as He did David, because God is no respecter of persons.

Jesus said that in this life we would have trouble, but to be of good cheer, because He has overcome the world. And if my life is found in His life, then I too have overcome the world. The enemy likes to make us think that we are about to see the end, and that we will fail. The only thing is, he keeps forgetting that we win. If we are in Christ, then we win.

Today is just another day to prove to the enemy that God still reigns, and that this David can and does encourage himself in the Lord just as my namesake did. And because of that, we both can say, the Lord is my helper, in whom will I be afraid?

Study For Yourself

We have been encouraged for the last couple of services in my church to be sure and take notes from the messages which have been preached. This is something that years ago I did very well, but have fallen off in the past years. One more of the "little foxes" that has been spoiling my vine I'm sure. Time to fix that, and chase off that fox.

As I was reading in 2 Timothy today I came across this passage in chapter 2 verse 7, take a look at it with me here: "Think about what I am saying. The Lord will help you understand all these things." Paul is encouraging young Timothy to think about the things that he had been instructing him, and that while he was thinking about them, the Lord would help him to understand them.

Do you study the Bible on your own? Have you even thought about doing that? Some people I know think that in order to understand the Bible you have to go to Bible School. Well not according to this passage of Scripture. Paul says if we will think about what has been said, the Lord will help us to understand it.

Taking notes at church is a great thing to do, but an even better thing is to take those notes and go over them later in the day. Begin to think about what was said, because that is when the Lord will help you understand them. I heard Pastor David Emigh say for years that the amount of thought and study you give to the Scripture is the amount of power and virtue that will come back to you. It's the principle of sowing and reaping.

We cannot expect men and women of God to feed us, and that be the only place we will find nourishment. Like a shepherd leads sheep to green pastures to eat, he doesn't get down with the sheep and put the grass in their mouths and force them to chew. No, the shepherd is in charge of getting the sheep to the food, but it is up to them to eat it. Just like that, it is not the Pastor's job to feed us, but to get us to where the food is. (His messages.) It is up to us to follow him there, and then to begin to eat. (Think about what his message says, and let the Lord help us understand these things, then apply them to our lives.)

If you are not taking notes when the Pastor is preaching, and going back over your notes later to let the Holy Spirit begin to talk with you about those things, then maybe you should consider doing so. You may be an anemic sheep, and not even realize it. Let's study to show ourselves approved to God, what's say? Strength and honor!

Don't Discipline Your Kids Just Because You Are Embarrassed

"Spare the rod, spoil the child." As the old saying goes, but what does that exactly mean? And is it something that we should be doing in today's society? This topic has been so misunderstood, and misused it is not even funny. It's kind of like the old joke I heard about a very devout Christian mother who would wake her children every day by taking a wooden paddle to their backsides as they lay in the bed sleeping. The kids would cry out, "Mom! Why do you spank us every morning?" Her reply was always the same, "Proverbs 22:15 says foolishness is bound up in the heart of the child, and the rod of correction will drive it far from him. I'm driving the foolishness out of you."

Now why that is some what humorous, or disturbing depending on how you were disciplined as a child. This one area has been attacked in our modern era and we are now reaping a harvest of poor citizens because of it. Children can be a handful that much is true. And being in the retail environment, I have seen just about every type of kid you can imagine. And let me say right here and now, there are no bad children. There are children that have never been corrected or trained which causes them to act out a certain way, which most of the time makes people cringe, but the kids themselves are not inherently bad.

What we really have is a parenting problem, not a kid problem. Just today, I had a rather attractive mother with two kids come into my store and begin to shop around to see what they could see. The little boy, about two years old I'd say was getting into all types of stuff, something typical for this age child to do. He reached for a package of shoe laces that are on a little counter I have and almost knocked it over and spilled all the laces onto the ground. Notice I said, "almost".

What happened next is why I decided to write this blog. Her voice rose in pitch as she began to scream at him and say to him, "Come on we've got to get out of this store before you tear it down!" "Hold my hands, both of you, stop that, don't touch that, quit it!" And they were gone.

The sad thing about this scene is that the children didn't walk away from this encounter having learned something that will make them better people. The little boy may grow up and have a phobia about shoelaces, but he didn't learn to control himself, because his mother didn't control herself. This really wasn't a spanking offense, and the real reason that mommy got so mad is because the little boy had embarrassed her in the store. And embarrassment is never a reason to discipline your child in any fashion.

We used wooden spoons on our kids when they were little. We would tell them no, then if they continued doing whatever we had told them no about, we would very calmly say, "No." again, and then spat their behind with the wooden spoon. That is until they got big enough that we would break the spoon, then we moved on to a wooden paddle. On a side note, here's a funny story about wooden spoons. Every year for Christmas since Cheryl and I have been married, my mom has always made her a mother-in-law box. This is something that was started by my Grandmother, and she gave to my mom.

Through out the year, my mom collects little knick knacks that she thinks Cheryl will like, and puts them into a box. On Christmas day, Cheryl opens the box and goes through all the things in it. This is one of the highlights of Christmas, especially since my mom started hiding cash in the various packages inside the box. Well one year, Cheryl pulled out a package of wooden spoons, and exclaimed, "Wooden spoons, great! I have broken all of mine on the kids, and I need new ones!" My mom grabbed the package and took it away from her saying, "Not on my grand babies!" We all had a laugh, and Cheryl promised to not use them on the kids. That's when we switched over to a wooden paddle.

The thing about paddling your children that you need to know is that you don't spank when you are angry or embarrassed. Spanking your children is a disciplining technique you use to modify the behavior of your child. So before you spank, your kids should know the rules about what they may get spanked for. For instance, if your child spills milk at the breakfast table, this is not a punishable offence. If, however your child throws the glass of milk across the room, then that is.

Before you spank your child, make sure that you are in control of yourself and calm. Take them aside, and talk to them about what they've done. Ask them to repeat to you what they did wrong. After you are sure that they understand, then turn them over your knee and paddle their bottoms with two to three swats. These need to be hard enough to make an impression, but not so hard to bruise. Also, it is good to know what the laws are in your state concerning paddling. In Oklahoma, it is okay as long as you don't bruise the child, bruising your children is a misdemeanor.

Remember, you are wanting to change the behavior, not the spirit of your child. Don't crush their little hearts by blasting away at them. They don't know a lot yet, and we as their parents are supposed to be teaching them the right ways. Also, never use your hands to spank your children. Our hands were made to hold and to love our kids, not to hit them. Using a paddle makes your son or daughter fear the rod, not you. Also, after you have finished spanking them, let them cry for a minute or two, it won't hurt them. Then afterwards, pray with them and help them learn how to ask God to forgive them according to 1 John 1:9, then be sure they know that you have forgiven them too. Then love on them and go about your day.

There is a lot to parenting, but you can do it as long as you stay calm and remember that our jobs as parents is to help train up the next generation to be the best they can be. You can do this!